Steve Hewitt

That's a wonderful model Jon. It must be very satisfying to acquire a new skill like CAD and Etch Design. Keep clear of the Lurgy, Steve.

Here it is....... Sorry for the confusion, Steve

Sorry for the confusion. I'm correcting a couple of things. Video back tomorrow (I hope) Steve

In due course..... Here are the Churminster signals, currently "self isolating" in my shed! To be delivered and installed, but when??????????????? Steve.

And here it is....... Steve.

Churminster semaphore signals - almost ready.......... I'm sorry for neglecting my posts on RMweb recently, but I haven't been completely idle. Below are the first four signals, mounted on their Transport & Test board. The arms are "all over the place" because the GF servo controllers have been set to "Safe", which moves the servos to mid-position and locks them there. These are the remaining five signals, including the two Westinghouse ground discs which were discussed earlier. I've taken a few video shots of the signals under test which I hope to edit together fairly soon. Steve.

Jon, Those Ground Signals are the bees knees. A couple of shots I took at Swanage a year or three ago.... Steve.

Hi Twiggy, The only real way to be sure would be for you to try a GF Dual controller yourself. If you buy one and find it doesn't meet your requirements, I'll buy it off you. Steve.

Thanks Rowsley and Mike, you've hit it on the head. The GF Controller has simple slide switch (called the Safe Mode) which sets the servos to mid position. i.e. Bandwidth 1.5msec. In this position the servos are "locked" and cannot be adjusted or operated. I assemble my signals so that the arms are in "mid position" when Safe Mode is selected. Once installed on the layout, it is necessary to switch the Safe Mode OFF, and then adjust each Signal Arm to its correct position "ON" or "OFF" according to how the control system is set. The control system can be as simple as an On/Off switch or any equivalent. The first minute of this video shows this quite clearly: I can't think of any way to make it easier than this. Steve.

Come for a chat...... This coming weekend I'll be demonstrating, with Les Green, at the Preston Exhibition. Why not come along for a chat. I'll have a number of my recent builds for you to examine and play with, controlled by GF Controls Dual and 8-Way signal controllers. (Still the easiest to install and adjust). Hope to see you there........ Steve.

A brief update...... With the layout not operational at present, John has been concentrating on some fine detailing of the trackwork which is normally out of reach when the layout is fully assembled. The process has been described in detail earlier, but these pictures show the latest progress: As can be seen, the point rodding has only yet been "marked out", so that will have to come later, along with ballasting, barrow crossings etc. Very shortly, this base board will be exchanged for another on the workbench, after which it will be time to re-assemble the whole layout for operator training prior to our visit to the Bristol Exhibition in May. Two of the Lime Street crew will be demo-ing at the Preston Show next weekend - Les Green and myself. We'll be happy to discuss anything "Lime Street" related (or almost anything else), so do come and have a chat. Hope to see many of you there........ Steve.

Thanks Tony. I'm afraid those cruel close-ups don't do any favours for my painting. Steve.

Hello 158 Man, I'll send you a Personal Message. Steve.

Hi Dave, The Westinghouse ground signals are designed to be operated by a "Push/Pull" wire from below the baseboard. This is usually a servo motor, but no reason why a wire in tube system shouldn't work. Just be aware, the 3D printed signal body is quite delicate, so the manual operation should incorporate something to prevent exerting too much Push or Pull The 3D prints are available from Les Green's shop on Shapeways - see: https://www.shapeways.com/shops/railway-odds-and-ends?li=pb The printed signal incorporates the holes for the Optical Fibre to pass through. It is made for 0.5mm (.020 in.) for fibres. The fibre is obtainable from Circuitron -the makers of Tortoise point motors. The etched moving parts - Disc, Lever, Blinder are from the MSE kit. I hope this info. is helpful. Good luck with building the signals. Get in touch again if I can help in any way. Steve.

Hi Dave, I think you'll find the BR(S) ground signals were fairly distinctive. They were the "Westinghouse" product, with a "semi-circular" disk and the spectacle vertically above the Disc Pivot. I just happen to have a couple on my workbench at present These are made from a 3D printed body, with etched parts from the MSE kit, and lighting by fibre optic. Quite fiddly, but well worth the effort. If you want any further details, just ask..... Steve.

Hello Dave, Are you looking for "Ready to Run" ground signals? I think you will be unlucky. The style of ground signals used by the various Railway Companies and BR Regions varied quite a lot. There are kits or at least components available from MSE and others. These are capable of being made to operate by Servo Motor, if you take care. If you tell me your BR region, I'll try to point you in the right direction. There are quite a few examples scattered through this topic. I also had a separate Topic on assembling a MSE kit for a GWR 16" signal and operated by a servo. see:

Hi Mike, Thanks for your comment. I wish I had your knowledge, or just a small part of it. Never having worked on the Railway, I have to rely on books, photos and the wishes of clients when constructing the models. In this case the bracket signal I have just completed was inspired by that at Waddon Marsh, as shown as Plate 103 on page 89 of my "Pryer". Plate 88 on Page 75 also shows quite clearly White painted Weights on a two doll bracket. Thanks one and all for your comments. I learn something new most days. Unfortunately it is often after I've committed my lack of knowledge to a completed model Steve.

Hi, The LSWR finials are Brass castings from Alan Gibson. 3D printed versions are also available from Modelu. I've got some, but not used them yet. MSE also have a White Metal version, but they are quite delicate Steve.

Well, there's not a lot to say....... The rest of the structure followed my usual methods, using MSE, Gibson etc. etches, and Les Green 3D prints. The pile of MDF blocks is to represent the height of the signal on the Railway above the baseboard. It is on elevated ground. Getting all the operating linkages in was a bit of a squeeze. More soon, I hope....... Steve.

Moving on.......... The second signal for Churminster is the Up Home. Number CH3G This is a SR Rail Built left hand bracket with three dolls, carrying four arms. The main doll reads to Platform 3. The left hand doll, a smaller one, reads to the Goods Yard, to the left of the main line. The right hand doll carries two arms, the upper full size arm reads to the Bay Platform 1. The lower, small arm reads to the entry to the Shed / Yard. First job was to build the main post from C&L bull-head Rail. This was soldered together in pairs, which were drill for the spacers (.45mm Lace Pins). The two pairs were then joined with temporary cross plates to make the basic post. So far, nothing unusual, but followers of my topic will know I like very firm foundations for my signals. To achieve that I first turned up a "plug" for the base of the post, which is a good fit between the four rails. It is hollow to accommodate the fibre optics which will be installed later. A socket to take this plug was turned and fitted to the into signal's base-plate. You can see here the four guide tubes for the operating wires, and fitted below the base-plate is the half-inch dia. brass Foundation Tube. This allows the bottom of the post to fit closely and be supported both inside and out. More soon about the rest of the construction..... Steve.

White Weights..... I quote from the layout owner's statement about his railway : "my interest had settled on the Southern Railway and on a period stretching from just before WW2 until just prior to nationalisation." i.e. Before BR(S) had developed its paint protocols. The "Visibility" issue was very relevant during wartime, and not just for Train Crew. Thank you all for your interest and constructive criticism, which is always welcome. Steve.

Hi Jonathan, Thanks for your kind comment. I don't use Brass wire for anything! I always use Nickel Silver of various diameters from 0.31mm up to 0.5mm for operating wires. The thinnest is usually reserved for Ground Signals or very short runs on others. The problem is that it buckles and kinks too easily. In real life the signal wires are always in tension, but in our models they are required to push as well as pull! Most operating wires are made from 0.4mm dia N/S wire. I always blacken the wire with "Gun Blue" before use. If you need to solder it, you must clean off the Black first, as Gun Blue makes a good solder resist. Hope this is helpful. Steve.

Hi Chris, The short answer is "Visibility". Easier to see in dark conditions - particularly wartime. Still used today by Network Rail in places. Steve.

Happy New Year to all my RMweb followers. I hope I'm able to stimulate your continued interest in the signals I build and if my ramblings encourage some of you "have go", so much the better. Here is my first project for 2020 - the semaphore signals for Tony Teague's "Churminster & Stowe Magna" railway. Here's a link to his Topic: A very good article about Tony's layout appears in the current issue of Hornby Magazine. My contribution is going to be the Semaphore signalling - the colour light signals have already bee installed. Starting first with Churminster, where all the signalling is semaphore, the first to be built is the Platform 3 Up Starter. This is an ex-LSWR tall lattice signal with co-acting arms, converted to Upper quadrant operation. I have already posted a few "work in progress" shots on Tony's topic Here a few shots of the completed model, with a short video to follow (don't hold your breath). You can see here how the co-acting effect is achieved. The operating wire passes through the lower weight bar and continues up to the upper weight bar, ensuring they both move together and by an equal amount. Very careful measuring of the links between the weight bars and the their signal arms is necessary to ensure both arms are parallel. More soon... Steve.

Hi Tony, Here's a little taster of what's to come in 2020......... This is the Platform 3 Up Starter. Its a tall ex-LSWR lattice post with co-acting arms, necessary because of sighting over the footbridge. These work-in-progress shots were taken a while ago now, so I'll show some later shots when I can. They will probably be on my "Semaphore Signals" topic elsewhere on RMweb. Best wishes for 2020. Steve.